Aric Almirola
Nashville Advance
Smithfield Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing

Event Overview

• Event: Inaugural Ally 400 (Round 17 of 36)
• Time/Date: 3:30 p.m. EDT on Sunday, June 20
• Location: Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway
• Layout: 1.333-mile, concrete oval
• Laps/Miles: 300 laps/399.9 miles
• Stage Lengths: Stages 1: 90 laps / Stage 2: 95 laps / Final Stage: 115 laps
• TV/Radio: NBCSN / MRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● It’s been 10 years since NASCAR last competed at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway, when the Xfinity Series concluded a 10-year run there. The NASCAR Cup Series has never competed on the 1.333-mile concrete oval.

● Aric Almirola is one of the few drivers in this weekend’s Cup Series inaugural Ally 400 field who has raced at Nashville Superspeedway in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series. In four Xfinity Series starts at the track, Almirola has three top-10 finishes and one top-five with a best finish of fifth. In four Truck Series starts, Almirola has earned two top-10s and a top-five with a best finish of third.

● Last weekend, Almirola raced his way into the NASCAR All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth by winning the All-Star Open. He finished eighth in the All-Star Race, but the mistake-free day was arguably one of the No. 10 team’s most successful days of the season.

● In Almirola’s last 10 starts at 1.5-mile tracks, he has earned three top-10 finishes and has led 36 laps. At Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, a 1.366-mile track comparable in length to Nashville, Almirola has two top-10s in his last three starts. He was involved in an early accident in his most recent visit to Darlington last month but showed speed before the incident.

● Career Stats: Almirola has career totals of two wins, two poles, 24 top-five finishes, 80 top-10s and 858 laps led in 368 NASCAR Cup Series starts.

● Smithfield Foods celebrates 10 years of partnership with Almirola this season with a special campaign called Taste Victory.As one of the most active partners in NASCAR, Smithfield plans to engage fans all year long by hosting a microsite that provides the opportunity to win when Almirola wins or finishes inside the top-10. When Almirola wins, one fan wins $10,000, and 10 fans win a gift card for each top-10 finish. The microsite also doubles as an Aric Almirola fan page and entertainment source where fans can get behind the wheel of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford with a custom racing game, and learn more about Almirola with fast facts, favorite recipes and custom content about his life on and off the track. Visit www.tastevictory.com to learn more. Thanks to Almirola’s Feb. 11 win in his Duel qualifying race for the Daytona 500, one lucky fan has already won $10,000.

● Beyond the 10 YouTube Series: In 2021, Almirola continues to share his life beyond the No. 10 Smithfield Ford with season three of his award-winning YouTube series. Fans and media can subscribe on YouTube to see Almirola’s personality on and off the track. Episodes have already featured life as a dad, a husband and an athlete, and it gives fans a unique perspective on what goes on in the life of a professional NASCAR driver. Fans can also follow Almirola’s social media channels: @Aric_Almirola on Twitter and Instagram, and @AricAlmirola on Facebook.

● After the season’s first 16 points-paying events, the Smithfield Ford team sits 28th in the championship with 205 points, 459 behind leader Denny Hamlin.

Aric Almirola, Driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing

You have some solid finishes at Nashville in the Xfinity and Truck series. Are you looking forward to getting back there after a solid finish at Texas last weekend?

“I’m certainly looking forward to it coming off one of our best days this year. We tried something new and had a fast car good enough to let us race for a million bucks and we didn’t make any mistakes as a race team. It was the kind of day we needed heading to a new race that can get us back on track after the year we have had. We really needed that as a race team. Everyone is headed to Nashville with a clean slate and that gives me a lot of hope for a solid weekend.”

With this weekend bringing back practice and qualifying at another intermediate track, does this give you more opportunity?

“Absolutely. If we can have similar speed as last weekend, we have the opportunity to start up front in cleaner air and see what we have for the day. Bad luck has put us back in the standings and, when you’re far back in the standings, you start every weekend in a bad spot and it puts you in more unlucky positions. This format is so tough because we start outside the top-20 in dirty air and you can’t pass back there. Then you’re fighting so hard to make up a few spots at a time.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
NASHVILLE SUPERSPEEDWAY
ALLY 400
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
JUNE 16, 2021

RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER/NATURE VALLEY CAMARO ZL1 1LE, Teleconference Transcript:

WHEN YOU THINK OF NASHVILLE, DO YOU THINK OF RACES THAT YOU’VE BEEN IN THERE? DO YOU THINK OF TESTING THERE? DO YOU THINK OF THE PRAYER? DO YOU THINK OF GUITARS? WHAT DO YOU THINK OF?
“For me, it was always kind of that racetrack that for me when I was first starting out in my career, it was really close to home. It’s only 3.5-hours away from my hometown, so I always had a lot of friends and family that came. I’ve had some good memories of the track and I’ve had some bad ones. I was actually just watching pre-race of 2011. We ended up running second in that race to Carl. Then, like you said, a lot of the testing that we did in the wintertime – it was really cold there. So, obviously now, it’ll be really hot, slick and a lot of fun.”

“There’s a lot of things that I think I remember, but also a lot of things I feel like I don’t remember – what exactly it feels like driving the car around a concrete racetrack that big and also kind of that flat. There will be a lot of things to pick up on in that 50-minute practice that we have.”

DO YOU THINK THE DRIVERS THAT HAVE ALREADY RACED AT NASHVILLE MIGHT HAVE AN ADVANTAGE THIS WEEKEND? ARE THE CARS AND THE TRACK DIFFERENT NOW THAT IT’S NOT GOING TO GIVE TOO MUCH OF AN ADVANTAGE?
“I definitely think anytime you’ve raced at a racetrack, there’s a little bit of an advantage. Simulator time obviously kind of helps that transition quite a bit. And these cars are totally different than what we’ve ever ran at Nashville (Superspeedway) before. I would say most of us had a lot of test sessions there, at least in the Cup Series. So, I feel like a lot of us have been there and have had laps there. I do think there is a little bit of a comfort feeling knowing that you’ve been there before.”

IS THERE A TRACK THAT’S ON THE CURRENT SCHEDULE THAT IS MOST SIMILAR TO NASHVILLE THAT YOU GUYS ARE LOOKING AT ALL?
“No, I think Nashville (Superspeedway) is kind of its own beast. It’s concrete and fairly flat compared to most other racetracks of similar size. The concrete does have a little bit of a different reaction, as far as however much rubber is laid down and things like that. It definitely took more rubber than I remember when I went back and watched some of the races, so I’m anxious to see if we can get the groove moved up instead of just running the bottom of the racetrack. I think the weather is going to be good this weekend for the opportunity to move around the racetrack, especially with the Trucks, Xfinity and Cup all in the same weekend and the weather looking good.”

SINCE YOU SAID NASHVILLE IS KIND OF ITS OWN BEAST NOW, DO YOU VIEW IT AS A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD FOR EVERY TEAM, CONSIDERING EVERYONE IS KIND OF STARTING FROM SQUARE ONE HERE THIS WEEKEND?
“I wouldn’t go that far. It’s still a circle track; we’ve still got the same cars that we run every week. So, I think that the cars and teams that are the ones to beat are still the ones to beat. I feel like us drivers in a 50-minute practice session, we pick up on things really fast. One or two runs in, we kind of have everything figured out, as far as what you need in your racecar and how to get around the racetrack. I think the cars that run really well right now are still going to be the ones that you have to beat.”

LOOKING AHEAD TO POCONO RACEWAY NEXT WEEKEND, ANOTHER DOUBLEHEADER. WHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM THAT EXPERIENCE WITH THAT MUCH COMPRESSION IN THE SCHEDULE, LOGISTICALLY AND ON THE TRACK THAT HELPED YOU FROM ONE DAY TO THE OTHER?
“It was cool for us. Pocono (Raceway) is a track that we’ve just been average at. We had an idea going in of what we needed. Obviously, running a race and turning around and running the next day, you’re able to make those adjustments that you feel like you needed that you normally talk about the following week in your debrief; like ‘when we go back next time, I want to try this or do this’ and you’re able to implement that overnight. I think we made the right adjustments between the two races last year and I’m looking forward to doing that again. As long as you have good weather in Pocono, a doubleheader is a great idea.”

IF THE TRACK IS NEW TO YOU AND YOU GET A SHORT PRACTICE, LIKE YOU SAID, YOU GUYS ARE PROFESSIONAL AND YOU CAN PICKUP ON IT AND WHATNOT. WHAT IS YOUR RHYTHM OF A NEW TRACK? WHAT DO YOU DO TO PREPARE FOR IT?
“For us and our race team at JTG Daugherty Racing, Ryan Preece and I don’t get simulator time. I think we both use the same WR1 iRacing Sim that I have right here behind me to make laps at Nashville (Superspeedway), and like you said, just get that rhythm of what everything is like. The things I remember about the racetrack when I ran it: the wall comes up really fast off of turn four; turn two exits really wide; and turn three getting in is kind of tricky. I feel like we kind of have a rhythm a little bit from running laps on iRacing or the simulator. Your team has a run log of what you want to do in that 50-minutes. It’s so condensed, so you have to have it scienced out in what you plan on going through. Going out there and running 10, 15, 20-laps to kind of figure it out, you don’t really have that opportunity. You better be ready when you get there.”

DO YOU REMEMBER – IS IT DIFFICULT TO PASS THERE? THAT’S PROBABLY ONE OF THE MOST CHALLENGING PARTS OF THE TRACK, RIGHT?
“Yeah, I definitely felt like it was tough to pass. But if you have a really good racecar, I think it shows there. You’re able to run up through the field. You’re able to get out and lead laps. I feel like, for us in one of the races that I watched, we stayed about three-quarters of a second right behind Carl. I could never really get any closer and never really fell any further back. It is a tough place to pass, but I do think with all three series this weekend, the heat, the temperatures, I think the racetrack could widen out and you could see some really good racing.”

HOW DO YOU THINK YOUR SEASON HAS GONE SO FAR AND WHAT’S YOUR MINDSET AS YOU GET CLOSER TO THE PLAYOFFS?
“It started off, I would say, on the right foot; pretty consistent and we were happy with where we were. Then, you try to take that next step of how are we going to turn these top-12’s and top-15’s into top-10’s. You start working on your racecars and you start going through the process of trying to figure that out, as well as at the same time as everybody else is trying to make theirs faster. I think we got off a little bit, so we’re looking to kind of reset our program and kind of make another final run towards the Playoffs. We’ve still got quite a few races left that if we can get back to that consistency that we had to start the season, I feel like as those races play out, we could be back in close racing for those Playoff spots. That’s our goal, that’s our plan, and we’re going to see how that shakes out starting this weekend at Nashville.”

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

NASCAR’s Cup Series is returning to Nashville, Tenn., for its first race there since 1984, and the Wood Brothers are back Cup racing in Music City for the first time since 1958 when team founder Glenn Wood ran 12th at the first-ever Cup race at the city’s Fairgrounds track.

That .596-mile oval is still hosting short-track races and is the oldest continuously operating track in America, but Sunday’s Ally 400 will be contested at Nashville Superspeedway, a relatively new 1.33-mile concrete oval in the suburb of Gladeville.

The superspeedway, which hosted IndyCar events as well as NASCAR’s Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series from 2001 to 2011 but has been closed since then, will reopen to a packed house on Sunday as all available tickets already have been sold.

Matt DiBenedetto and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane team will have a bit of an advantage over some of their competitors as DiBenedetto ran an Xfinity race there in 2010 and finished 10th. It was his second career start in NASCAR’s No. 2 series, the first coming the year before at Memphis.

DiBenedetto said he’s happy to be returning to the site of his first top-10 finish in a major NASCAR division.

“I’m excited to go there,” he said, adding that the current horsepower and handling package is another allure for him. “Any races we add to the schedule that are low downforce and high horsepower races are my favorite.”

There will be a 50-minute practice session on Saturday afternoon for the Cup Series, and qualifying for the Ally 400 is set for Sunday at 10:05 a.m. (11:05 Eastern Time). The green flag for the 300-lap race is set to fly just after 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time. There will be Stage breaks at Laps 90 and 185.

This is the first race of the season for the NBC broadcast crew, which has taken over from FOX, and the race will be shown on NBCSN.

About Motorcraft:

Motorcraft offers a complete line of replacement parts that are recommended by Ford Motor Company. From routine maintenance to underhood repairs, Motorcraft parts offer value with high quality and the right fit at competitive prices. Motorcraft parts are available nationwide at Ford and Lincoln Dealers, independent distributors and automotive parts retailers, and are backed by the Service Parts Limited Warranty of Ford Motor Company. For more information, visit www.motorcraft.com.

About Omnicraft:

Omnicraft is part of the Ford lineup of parts brands: Ford Parts, Motorcraft and Omnicraft. Omnicraft is the exclusive non-Ford/Lincoln parts brand of premium aftermarket parts. With over a century of parts heritage to build upon, Omnicraft provides excellent quality and fit and is a preferred choice of professional automotive technicians. To find out more about Omnicraft, visit www.omnicraftautoparts.com or contact your local Ford or Lincoln Dealership.

About Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center

Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center offers extraordinary service for routine vehicle maintenance including tire repair and replacement with a Low Tire Price Guarantee and a full menu of automotive services including oil and filter, brakes, alignments, batteries, and shocks and struts on all vehicle makes and models. Service is performed by certified technicians at more than 1,000 locations worldwide while you wait, and no appointment is necessary. For more information about Quick Lane, please visit www.quicklane.com.

About Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is a global company based in Dearborn, Michigan. The company designs, manufactures, markets and services a full line of Ford cars, trucks, SUVs, electrified vehicles and Lincoln luxury vehicles, provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company and is pursuing leadership positions in electrification, autonomous vehicles and mobility solutions. Ford employs approximately 200,000 people worldwide. For more information regarding Ford, its products and Ford Motor Credit Company, please visit www.corporate.ford.com.

Wood Brothers Racing

Wood Brothers Racing was formed in 1950 in Stuart, Va., by Hall of Famer Glen Wood. Wood Brothers Racing is the oldest active team and one of the winningest teams in NASCAR history. Since its founding, the team won 99 races (including at least one race in every decade for the last seven decades) and 120 poles in NASCAR’s top-tier series. Fielding only Ford products for its entire history, the Wood Brothers own the longest association of any motorsports team with a single manufacturer. Glen’s brother, Leonard, is known for inventing the modern pit stop. The team currently runs the Ford Mustang driven by Matt DiBenedetto in the famous No. 21 racer.

This Week in Motorsports: June 14-20, 2021

· NCS/NXS/NCWTS: Nashville Superspeedway – June 18-20

PLANO, Texas (June 16, 2021) – NASCAR is back in Nashville, and for the first time since 1984, the NASCAR Cup Series competes at Nashville Superspeedway this weekend. They will be joined by the NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, which will make their return to Nashville Superspeedway for the first time since 2011.

NASCAR National Series – NCS| NXS| NCWTS

Hamlin has Nashville experience… Cup Series points leader Denny Hamlin heads to Nashville and is one of very few drivers with track experience at the superspeedway. Hamlin earned his second career Xfinity Series pole position at the track in 2006 and drove to a third-place finish. The Virginia-native added a fourth-place finish the following year.

Busch looking for a milestone… Kyle Busch is looking for a big milestone this weekend – 100 Xfinity Series victories – at a track that he has already had much success at in his career. Busch went two-for-two in his Xfinity Series starts this season with his second win of the season at Texas Motor Speedway on Saturday and looks to add to that run of success with his third Xfinity Series win this season at Nashville. Although NASCAR has not competed in Nashville since 2011, Busch has scored victories at the track in both the Xfinity Series (2009) and Truck Series (2010, 2011).

Hemric plans to deliver… Daniel Hemric continued to run up front in the NASCAR Xfinity Series as he led laps for the sixth time in the past eight events on his way to his sixth top-five result of the season. With the fourth-place finish, Hemric is only 14 points from the runner-up position in the NXS point standings.

Nemechek continues to lead… John Hunter Nemechek continued with his stellar return to the Truck Series with his fourth victory in the first 11 events of the 2021 season at Texas Motor Speedway on Friday. With the victory, Nemechek extended his series points lead to 78 with four races remaining in the regular season.

Double-duty for Hill… After a tough start to the season, Austin Hill has scored top-10 finishes in eight of the last nine Truck Series events to move into third in the overall standings. Hill will return to his No. 16 Toyota Tundra for Hattori Racing Enterprises (HRE) this weekend, but also will be behind the wheel of the No. 61 Toyota Supra for the first time this season. Hill, who is scheduled to make several Xfinity Series starts this season, drove to a top-five finish at Kansas Speedway last fall to score his best Xfinity Series result.

Stay Connected

https://www.toyota.com/racing @ToyotaRacing.com @ToyotaRacing

facebook.com/ToyotaRacing Camera With Flash on Apple iOS 11.3 ToyotaRacingMedia.com

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands plus our 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota has created a tremendous value chain and directly employs more than 47,000 in North America. The company has contributed world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 40 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama that begins production in 2021.

Through its Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit www.toyotanewsroom.com.

Denny Hamlin
11 FedEx Express Toyota
Joe Gibbs Racing

Race Info:
Race: Ally 400
Date/Time: Sunday, June 20/3:30 p.m. ET
Distance: 300 laps/399 miles
Track Shape: Oval
Track Length: 1.333 miles
2020 Winner: N/A

Express Notes:

Press Kit: Download the 2021 FedEx Racing press materials at www.fedexracing.com/presskit, including bios for Denny Hamlin, Chris Gabehart and Joe Gibbs Racing leadership, program highlights and statistics.

All-Star Recap: Following a random draw, Hamlin started the multi-segment non-points paying event from the 16th position, and after a handful of laps, reported he was battling an extremely loose FedEx Camry. However, the unique format would give crew chief Chris Gabehart plenty of opportunities to make necessary adjustments to improve the handling. As the race progressed and adjustments were made, Hamlin became more comfortable with the handling and worked his way up to third during the fourth segment. Hamlin managed to stay in the top 10 during the fifth segment, which included a mandatory pit stop. The FedEx crew changed four tires during the stop but realized there was a good possibility that some of the lug nuts might not be tight. The team was hopeful there would be a well-timed caution that would allow them to remedy the situation, but the caution never came and Hamlin had to pit prior to the end of the race, relegating him to the 21st finishing position.

Nashville Preview: The NASCAR Cup Series heads to the Music City for the first ever running of the Ally 400 Cup Series event at Nashville Superspeedway. Drivers will try to conquer the 1.333-mile concrete oval in front of a sold-out crowd. Hamlin and his team will look to use their past success at superspeedways in an attempt to capture their first win of the season.

Hamlin Conversation – Nashville:

What are you looking forward to and what will be the struggle going to a track where no one really has much experience?

“It’s been 15 years since I’ve raced there, and I can remember how difficult it is to pass there, but we’ll have practice and that will be really helpful to get to know the track to find the lanes that we want to be in. I think it’s going to be a fun race, and it’s always interesting when you’re racing at a new track.”

What do you think about NASCAR adding this new destination to the Cup schedule?

“I know a lot of work has gone into getting the track ready for this event. Nashville is a great town, and there’s a lot for fans to do – at the track and in the surrounding area. It’s not just the race; there’s a whole family atmosphere and there’s a lot of fun things to do.”

FedEx Express Along for the Ride at Nashville: The #11 FedEx Express Toyota will carry the letters FYMA on the B-post in recognition of the FYMA Station in Columbia, Tenn. During the past year, the 36 team members at FYMA dealt with personal tragedies, with three employees losing loved ones – two sons and a brother – in the space of one month. The FYMA team pulled together and covered the open shifts and showed uplifting support for their fellow team members during trying times.

Team recognized for excellence in creative marketing and communications with team partners Castrol and Kohler

CONCORD, N.C. (June 16, 2021) — Roush Fenway Racing has been recognized for outstanding achievement by the prestigious Hermes Creative Awards, taking home four Platinum and two Gold Awards along with one Honorable Mention for its marketing efforts over the past year. The Hermes Creative Awards is an international competition that recognizes excellence in concept, writing and design of traditional and emerging media while promoting the philanthropic power of marketing and communication.

The team garnered a trio of awards for its creative marketing efforts designed to overcome pandemic induced obstacles. The fan-facing Roush Madness platform in March 2020 won Platinum in the Social Media Campaign category. The robust Virtual Hospitality Partner program that the team implemented with partners earned a pair of Gold Awards, one for the 2020 efforts in the Pandemic Response category and another for the virtual Daytona Live event for the 2021 Daytona 500 in the Virtual Event category.

“We are very proud of the efforts of our team over the last year,” said Roush Fenway Racing vice president of marketing operations and communicaitons Kevin Woods. “This has been a difficult year for everyone, and our team’s ability to adapt and develop innovative platforms for our partners has been extremely rewarding. We also appreciate the trust from our partners to allow us to continue pushing the envelope in promoting their brands and developing engaging marketing solutions.”

In addition, the team received Platinum Award recognition in two categories for its work with team partner Castrol. The campaign promoting the Garage Life platform with driver Ryan Newman during the early weeks of the Covid-19 shutdown won in the Social Content Campaign category, while the Driving for Change program to promote the team’s carbon neutral mission won in the Corporate Social Responsibility Program.

The team also received Platinum Award recognition for the unveil of the Kohler Generators partnership, with the program launch winning in the Strategic Communication/Marketing Plan category.

Finally, the team’s expanded prerace video productions took home an Honorable Mention in the Interactive Sports Video category.

Roush Fenway Racing has also won a total of 26 MarCom Platinum Awards since 2011, when it took home its first Platinum for the famed ‘Ricky vs. Trevor’ campaign. In addition, Roush Fenway has also taken home top honors from the PR News Platinum Awards, NASCAR Marketing and Communications Awards and Social Media Icon Awards.

Hermes Creative Awards is administered by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals (AMCP). The international organization consists of several thousand marketing, communication, advertising, public relations, digital media production, and freelance professionals. AMCP oversees awards and recognition programs, provides judges, and awards outstanding achievement and service to the profession.

Judges are industry professionals who look for companies and individuals whose talent exceeds a high standard of excellence and whose work serves as a benchmark for the industry. There are expected to be about 6,000 entries from throughout the United States and dozens of other countries in the Hermes Creative Awards 2021 competition.

Being a Platinum or Gold Winner is a tremendous achievement symbolized by the intricately detailed Hermes Platinum and Gold awards. The name Hermes (Greek messenger) and the idea for the award were chosen to represent our roles as the messengers and creators of marketing and communication materials and programs.

KEVIN HARVICK
Nashville Advance
No. 4 Monster Jam/Grave Digger Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing

Event Overview

• Event: Inaugural Ally 400 (Round 17 of 36)
• Time/Date: 3:30 p.m. EDT on Sunday, June 20
• Location: Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway
• Layout: 1.333-mile, concrete oval
• Laps/Miles: 300 laps/399.9 miles
• Stage Lengths: Stages 1: 90 laps / Stage 2: 95 laps / Final Stage: 115 laps
• TV/Radio: NBCSN / MRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● Introducing Grrraaaaaaaave Digger! That’s right, one of the most decorated Monster Jam trucks in the world will be represented in the inaugural Ally 400 NASCAR Cup Series race Sunday at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway… and we have Keelan Harvick to thank for it. Keelan wanted to give his dad, Kevin, the most awesome Father’s Day gift ever, so the eight-year-old organized a surprise for his dad – a Grave Digger paint scheme on Kevin’s No. 4 Ford Mustang. It turns out the iconic paint scheme featured on the 12,000-pound, larger-than-life truck that rides on enormous 66-inch BKT tires transfers well to a sleek and fast Stewart-Haas Racing-built Ford Mustang. The No. 4 Monster Jam/Grave Digger Ford Mustang is sure to turn heads this Father’s Day weekend – in the stands and on the track as drivers do a double-take when they see Grave Digger looming large in their rearview mirror.

● Fans in Nashville who want to see the real Grave Digger only need to wait a month. Monster Jam visits Bridgestone Arena in downtown Nashville July 17-18. There are three events – two on Saturday at 1 p.m. CDT and 6:30 p.m., and one on Sunday at 1 p.m. Tickets start at $20 and can be purchased by clicking here.

● It’s been 10 years since NASCAR last competed at Nashville Superspeedway, and it was an Xfinity Series race on July 23, 2011 that was won by Carl Edwards. The NASCAR Cup Series has never competed on the 1.333-mile oval, but Cup teams tested there extensively back in the day when it was fashionable to race on Sunday, test somewhere on Tuesday and Wednesday, and then fly to the next Cup race on Thursday. Harvick, now in his 21st year of Cup Series competition, has logged many laps in a Cup car at Nashville Superspeedway despite the track never hosting a Cup race until this Sunday’s inaugural Ally 400.

● Harvick has, however, raced at Nashville Superspeedway and performed incredibly well. In four career Xfinity Series starts at the track, Harvick has two wins – April 15, 2006 and April 3, 2010. He finished third on June 10, 2006 and recorded his worst finish, seventh, in his first Xfinity Series race at Nashville Superspeedway on April 14, 2001. It all gave Harvick an average finish of third. He also had a lap completion rate of 100 percent, running all 900 laps available to him, and he led 123 of those laps.

● Harvick also made one NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start at Nashville Superspeedway. It was on April 2, 2010 when he finished second to Kyle Busch.

Kevin Harvick, Driver of the No. 4 Monster Jam/Grave Digger Ford Mustang

So how does a Monster Jam truck – and not just any Monster Jam truck, but the Monster Jam truck of Monster Jam trucks – rank as a cool Father’s Day gift, and a surprise Father’s Day gift from your son, Keelan?

“It’s THE monster truck. Loud noises, big engines, big wheels, big tires, fast racecars, and to have that be a surprise, it’s surprising to me because of the fact that it’s with Grave Digger and everything, the history, that goes with that truck. But it doesn’t surprise me that it’s something related to a car and tying it in to what we do. This one caught me off guard, though, because I had no idea that any of this was happening and, to have my 8-year-old son be able to pull that off and know more about it than I do makes me feel like I’m a little bit left out. So we’re going to have to talk to somebody.”

How many times have you been to Monster Jam and what is it about those events that resonates with you and Keelan?

“We have been to Monster Jam. We went to Charlotte. We went to Atlanta several years ago. We’ve been to a few of them. For Keelan and I, racing is a legacy, you pass it on from one generation to the next. And the same thing has happened with Grave Digger and the drivers of that truck. What we do, you see generations of families that have had their fathers, their sons and their sons move on through the ranks of racing. It’s something that you grow up around and are a part of and you learn to love the sport. And when you’re around it, you understand it’s a family sport and, for me, that’s the best part of it – that it’s something we can do together.”

When Dennis Anderson, the patriarch of Grave Digger, was behind the wheel of his Monster Jam truck, he was crushing cars. That doesn’t typically work too well in a stock car. How are you going to live up to Grave Digger’s legacy?

“You’ve got to set yourself apart from everybody else, right? The best way to do that for us is to run faster than everybody else, so hopefully we can have this No. 4 Monster Jam/Grave Digger Ford Mustang doing what it’s supposed to do and running fast – scare them right off the track. They’re all going to be jealous because I get to drive Grave Digger’s car.”

You last competed at Nashville in 2010 during a NASCAR Xfinity Series race. What are your expectations when you roll back in there in 2021?

“I didn’t ever go to Nashville without the expectation of winning. It was one of our best racetracks throughout the years and we’ve always had good success there and always enjoyed the racetrack itself. I’m looking forward to Cup finally going there. I know that facility was built to entertain having a Cup date and I can’t believe it’s taken this long because Nashville is such a great area for us as a sport. I’m excited to be there because we have just a ton of fans. Obviously, it’s the home of Hunt Brothers Pizza, as well. So there’s just a lot of good things that are happening when we go back to Nashville.”

In addition to Xfinity Series racing at Nashville, that track was the go-to track back when you had unlimited testing. Outside of the Xfinity Series, how many testing miles do you think you have at Nashville?

“Not many in the last little bit, but there was a period of time that we spent a lot of time at Nashville. We developed a lot of the coil binding in the front and rear springs there and at Milwaukee. When Nashville was built, I actually was part of the very first tire test – the first time that anybody was on the racetrack. Obviously, I’ve had a little bit of a layoff there, but from the very first moment I’ve been a part of that racetrack.”

Talk about those days of unlimited testing, where after a three-day race weekend, you’d go test for two or three days somewhere, oftentimes at Nashville.

“Really, we can go back to 2000. I did all the testing for Dale Earnhardt as we went through the year. So, we would go race and then we would go to a racetrack, whatever racetrack that would be, and I also did my own testing. We probably did four or five tests – I think at that point they could only do seven tests in the Cup Series – and then I had all my tests that you could do in the Xfinity Series. But you could also go to any racetrack that wasn’t on the schedule, and at that particular point, Kentucky wasn’t on the schedule, so we spent a lot of time at Kentucky developing stuff for Dale and the Cup program. But for the most part, we did, midweek, probably 20-25 tests a year as we went through the season, and most of them would be two-day tests. And that’s what you did. You were never home. You tested all the time. When you had a problem, you just went somewhere and tested. Whether it be Greenville-Pickens or Caraway or VIR, Milwaukee, it didn’t matter, you could go to any racetrack if it wasn’t on the schedule. Through the years they just changed that because we would spend so much time at the racetrack. We would test on different brands of tires and different series of cars, and we would do whatever it took. But, for the most part, you probably spent 20-25 two-day tests away from what you did on those three-day weekends.”

Do veterans like yourself who have actual, on-the-ground experience at Nashville have a leg up on those who have only driven Nashville on a simulator?

“I don’t think so. Some of the younger guys haven’t been there before, but with all the information and all the technology that we have in today’s world with the tire test already happening there, the information is already spread through all the manufacturers. They’ll have all that stuff plugged into their simulators and have the track measured and do all the things that they do. I think there are a lot of guys who grew up even after I started a decade later, they were still racing there, so a lot of guys have experience at Nashville and I don’t think there will be a huge advantage.”

Technology advances quickly. Can you just go out onto the track there at Nashville and start ripping around, or do you need to see what’s it’s like after a 10-year absence?

“The good news is it’s concrete, so it’s always had what I always called the sidewalk hop, like if you’re riding your bike or your skateboard over the sidewalk. And I think as you go through the weekend, a lot of those little cracks and things start to fill in with rubber, so hopefully the tire will actually lay some rubber on the racetrack because that was always the biggest thing there, getting the racetrack rubbered up. Once the racetrack rubbers up, it becomes much better to race on because the groove just becomes so much wider. It’ll be interesting to see if we race on the track as it is, or if we race on the track with PJ1 sprayed on it somewhere.”